“Does it ever not rain at cross country meets? Because literally every meet I’ve ever been to it has rained,” said first year runner Brady Bateman to his coaches at the Idaho 3A District I Championshipwmeet. Indeed the rain came down hard all day long as Bonners Ferry, Coeur d’Alene Charter, Kellogg, Priest River, and Timberlake vied for the top team scores to qualify for the 3A State Championships. The meet was hosted by Priest River High School on a course the Badgers ran on in late September. Familiarity with the 5k course, however, was hindered by slick conditions and deep mud puddles. The phrase “true cross country race” was heard around the meet at various points.

Despite being underdogs for most of the season, the Bonners Ferry Lady Badgers earned a coveted berth to state by tying with Coeur d’Alene Charter for 2nd place. “It’s one of those weird rules you never pay attention to until you need it,” head coach Tyler Warner said. The Idaho High School Activities Association rules state: “If a tie exists for the final qualifying position, both teams shall advance.” The scoring began with Jordan Young taking second place with a time of 20:41 and Abigail Gorton taking 4th with 21:03. Ada Bonnell, in the key 3rd scoring position for the Lady Badgers, had a strong start to post a time of 23:52. Lauren Stidham also pushed herself to a 25:03. Liz Cowley, a senior, finished in 26:51 while Freshman Serenity Fahey crossed at 28:14. Rayan Naylor accounted for the Badgers 7th runner at 28:31. When the scoring was done both Charter and Bonners Ferry had 60 points and both advanced to State. Timberlake claimed 1st place with a team score of 26.

“We kept telling the teams ‘there is always a chance,’” said Coach Catherine DelSalle. In their last regular season meet, Charter edged Bonners Ferry by 2 points at Kellogg. At Sandpoint, Bonners Ferry beat the Charter girls by 3. In every other head-to-head meet this season, Charter bested Bonners Ferry, usually by double digits. On Thursday, however, the Badgers proved they are equals and will compete at State as a result.

The boys’ team put up a hard fight, but ultimately fell short of their season goal. Austin Donn, however, led the way for Bonners Ferry and came in 12th place for the last individual qualifying position. Donn will represent Bonners Ferry in the 3A State Championships by virtue of a rule stating the “top one-third of competitors in the district race shall advance.” Donn finished in 18:42. Behind Austin was Sam Gorton with a time of 19:09, Eric Ellis finished his senior campaign in 19:19. Dawson Thomas was close behind at 19:28. Junior Ryne Rae finished his season with a time of 20:15 while classmate Nick Magdaleno crossed the finish at 20:30. Brady Bateman, who often chose shorter distances by running through mud puddles instead of around, finished his first season as the last scoring position for Bonners Ferry with a time of 24:06. Behind Bateman was junior Will Colson who ran a season best 24:06.6. Alex Urbaniak was recorded as finishing his season in 24:27 while Nathan Olsen ended with a 25:20. Cameron Rae was on Olsen’s heels with a time of 25:26. In the end, Charter upset Timberlake with a score of 29 points. Timberlake was 2nd with 40. Priest River’s boys’ team took the final qualifying position with 62 points, leaving Bonners Ferry and Kellogg at home with scores of 94 and 137 respectively.

“The boys have a bright future,” said coach DelSalle. “They are young and getting better every year. We expect them to be competitive again next season.”

Idaho 3A State Championships begin with the ladies at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 29th at Portneuf Wellness Complex in Pocatello. Austin Donn will race at approximately 11:45 a.m. after the 1A and 4A girls’ races.